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PR Experts Suggest iPhone 4 Recall 'Inevitable' as Antenna Issue Snowballs

kiljoy616 said:
Its not a Toyota-style disaster, its even bigger.
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This iPhone brouhaha is not on the same scale as the Toyota debacle. Why? Because people aren't dying from iPhone 4 antenna problems. People died from various Toyota design deficiencies. It's a totally different level since public safety is not at issue.

Regardless of the seriousness of the antenna design deficiency, it's a setback for Apple in terms of brand image. However, their rare Apple misstep isn't leading to a bodycount.

Sincerely,

AAPL shareholder and Toyota owner
 
Hmm, personally I'm quite happy with mine. I freely admit that when I touch the antenna the signal drops. I bought a £3 cover for it which went on the day I received mine so not too bothered as that seems to fix it. Not ideal to rely on a cover true but I wouldn't carry mine without one anyway.

In some defence of the antenna it picks up 3G much better than what my 3GS did. Maybe my opinion will change when I try AT&T on it next month but who knows.
 
finnns2000 said:
Yeah... it's necessary. Their reputation will be shot to hell if they don't. Sadly, I personally have a couple buddies who think nothing of all the problems and had to buy the phone.

I'm still holding out with a 3G, money ready but noooo way I'm buying the current crop of crap.
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I think we will get a good idea before the end of the month. The IP4 is due for an end of July Launch in Canada. If they go ahead with the launch there will be no recall. If they are even thinking about a recall they would not launch in additional countries.
 
Let me preface this with, I've been an Apple user for several years and use them in my personal life and work life, have an iPad, MBP, Mac Pro, iPhone 3g, who knows how many ipods, etc....

I originally started looking at other phone options before the iP4 problems came about because I'm pretty sick of AT&T. I wasn't too serious though because I figured the iP4 would be a great product and worth living with AT&T. For that very reason I've stuck with my iPhone 3g for a while.

The combination of AT&T + iPhone possible signal issues + Apple's near silence on the issue has pushed me closer and closer to Verizon. I'm most likely going to the Droid X. I'm sure the Droid X will have it's problems of it's own, but at least I'll be on a decent carrier, and in six months there will be another Android phone that will be good too that I can switch too.

AT&T Bad Service + iP4 Signals Issues + iP4 Proximity Sensor issues + Apple's silence + the likelihood of a fix or new iPhone until next year is too much for me to commit to the iP4.

I know not all people are having troubles with the iP4, but the way Apple is handling it leaves a bad taste in my mouth and makes the problem appear worst then it is.

The perception of the phone being plagued with problems is damaging, even if it's not completely true, I hope Apple's PR can learn from this.
 
With Apple being such a great PR company, I would think that they would be more out in front of this story. It must really have them reeling back at the labs to find some possible way to "fix" this. I will say again that I cannot make this happen on my phone, but I'm not saying that it doesn't exist. What is for sure is that this is not going away and Apple must do something and quickly.
 
There is an additional problem here. If this software fix for signal strength (which supposedly effects all iPhone users) starts showing people that the really don't have any decent signal in their own home, then Apple has another problem on their hands. People bought their phones and took them home and long after the 30 day return period people were lead to believe that their phones had better signal strength than they really had.

Apple had best have a plan in place for how to deal with angry customers who suddenly (after the software update) realize that their signal strength was never very good, but their iPhone has been over reporting signal strength. If this software issue does effect all iPhone users, then Apple may be refunding a lot more than just iPhone 4s.
 
Almost every time I take out my iPhone 4 in public, I get asked if it's the new phone -- and when I say it is, I get asked some variation of "so does it just not work?" or "how are you holding it?" or "are you going to take it back?" -- all while I'm not really having many reception issues at all. I do notice the bars fluctuate more than they did with my previous iPhone, but I've never had a problem with calls or going online.

So, yeah...this is a SERIOUS problem for Apple, if every Tom, Dick and Harry is asking me if my phone has a problem...
 
cpalmer17 said:
If you believe a recall is inevitable, time to short the Apple stock. I mean, what do you think the cost of recalling potentially 2 million phones would be? Oh, and by the way, how about a class action lawsuit related to AT&T exclusivity? Not that that's a guaranteed win for the class, but the specter of losing such an action can't help the profit prospects for Apple.
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Ah... the kind of FUD that's music to my years.
BIG buying opportunity.
 
Networks/countries aren't related

Wrecked said:
Just wondering if people overseas are seeing this issue - all the noise is about AT&T and in the US - but I haven't been able to find an iphone 4 in the UK that can show the problem -
Is it somehow an AT&T thing? am I useless at holding the phone? Does it only affect some phones?

Just curious as to how far this spreads outside the US as I haven't seen/heard much noise about it over here in the UK. I would think it should affect all phones on all networks - anyone have any data??
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I've tried four iPhone 4s in two different O2 stores and have been able to replicate the problem on every single one. Although they didn't lose signal altogether, they went from full 3G signal to low 2G (GPRS) signal. It's definitely a design flaw.
 
MMR said:
Only by people like you, your so silly.
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Ok ok so that was a bad one, but already people who don't know crap about this are hEaring about it and it's become the new face of apple. Hell I have a 3gs and don't want a 4 till this gets cleared up!!!
 
daniel8400 said:
UNDERSTAND that something will be done about the issue whether a recall or a software fix or maybe some other fix. I know nothing about antennas but I do know the law. Apple cannot do or say anything that could be interpreted as admission on their part that there is a problem. That could be used against them in some of the class actions that have been filed, and will be filed. So, do not expect a response from Apple other than there is nothing wrong. They are busy doing a cost analysis to determine what is more expensive a massive recall or litigating there cases with the possibility of paying out damages. It will all come to light soon.
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Agreed....Apple's beancounters need to figure out that two million bumpers cost a lot less than the result of any class action.
 
hobbbz said:
I tested mine and my girlfriend's while purchasing in the mall. No signal loss, get home, signal loss.
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No signal loss or no bar loss? If you are in a mall with great reception, you lose signal 100% guaranteed everytime, but do you lose enough to drop a bar? Probably not. If you get a signal of -65 and use the choke the chicken grip and it drops to -88, that's not enough to drop a bar. But did you lose some of the signal strength? Damn straight you did. Now if you are in a weak area and are starting off at -91 (which is close to the lower limits of 5 bars), you lose that same amount as stated above, you'll drop to either 2 or 3 bars.

Be lucky you live in an area where you don't lose service.
 
Apple's reputation is being hurt. I show people my iPhone 4 and they act like I'm holding a dead skunk, and ask why I'm not buying a droid phone. I love my iPhone 4.
 
all this is one big mess, if apple wants to make this right they have to do something. a software patch will not be the fix, they need a hardware fix. even if you bring your iphone into an apple store and they will fix it on the spot or the next day if possible. the thing that apple just says hold it different or get a case is a slap in the face, i still stand bt my iphone 4 but something really has to be done. a recall probably wont happen but we will just have to wait.
 
ghostface147 said:
No signal loss or no bar loss? If you are in a mall with great reception, you lose signal 100% guaranteed everytime, but do you lose enough to drop a bar? Probably not. If you get a signal of -65 and use the choke the chicken grip and it drops to -88, that's not enough to drop a bar. But did you lose some of the signal strength? Damn straight you did. Now if you are in a weak area and are starting off at -91 (which is close to the lower limits of 5 bars), you lose that same amount as stated above, you'll drop to either 2 or 3 bars.

Be lucky you live in an area where you don't lose service.
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Testing in a AT&T or Apple Store is not a real life test. When I used to work at the stores people would flock to the front of the store (couches and chairs in front etc.) to use t)heir cell phones (AT&T installed some type of signal booster pre iPhone launch.)
 
MarcBook said:
I've tried four iPhone 4s in two different O2 stores and have been able to replicate the problem on every single one. Although they didn't lose signal altogether, they went from full 3G signal to low 2G (GPRS) signal. It's definitely a design flaw.
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Actually that's interesting, what do they do in the apple store when a customer goes to buy a phone and the customer tries this and is succeeds at killing the strength, is apple so smug they can stand there and say "then don't buy it we have enough dumb-assed customers that will buy a defective phone"?
 
Mike Nassour said:
OK, let's get something straight....

This has absolutely nothing to do with frickin' software.

Any first-year electrical engineering student can tell you that if a person grasps an electrically-charged antenna capacitance will result. Translated to English...if you grab an antenna, the signal drops.

Period. No question. It's simple.

$1,000,000 bet says that somewhere in the design process, there was a cover for that "cool" antenna that Jobs opined about during the intro, but it was cut for cost reasons. That cover could have been a simple coating (as we saw for years on the metal antennas of CDMA phones) or something as elaborate as a bumper.

This bloody phone is defective in design. Apple, for once you demand for coolness and low cost of production have jumped up and bitten you.

Recall it. Now.
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What about the people who have no issues?

Not everybody is having the issue. Maybe it was a bad batch of phones. I got 6 friends who have iPhone 4 and non of them have the issues.

Free bumpers is about all we will get. If they do recall it...it will be about 2 months before everybody gets their replacement phone.
 
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